Wedbush Increases Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) Price Target to $375.00

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) had its target price upped by Wedbush from $325.00 to $375.00 in a research report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the CRM provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also commented on CRM. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Salesforce from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, November 18th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $425.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, August 26th. JMP Securities raised their target price on Salesforce from $342.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Salesforce from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $341.89.

Salesforce Trading Down 3.8 %

NYSE CRM opened at $330.01 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $300.85 and a 200 day moving average of $270.29. The company has a market capitalization of $315.49 billion, a PE ratio of 57.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. Salesforce has a 1 year low of $212.00 and a 1 year high of $348.86.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $9.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The company’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.63 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Salesforce will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.83%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total value of $246,480.39. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,597,151.79. This represents a 13.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $117,824.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,998,741.74. This trade represents a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 144,510 shares of company stock valued at $42,475,538 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Salesforce

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 37.6% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 196,584 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $53,807,000 after buying an additional 53,739 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 7.4% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 43,812 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $11,992,000 after acquiring an additional 3,021 shares in the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter valued at $380,000. Sfmg LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 0.4% in the third quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 23,348 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $6,391,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 570.4% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 54,446 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $14,903,000 after purchasing an additional 46,324 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Company Profile

Salesforce, Inc provides Customer Relationship Management (CRM) technology that brings companies and customers together worldwide. The company's service includes sales to store data, monitor leads and progress, forecast opportunities, gain insights through analytics and artificial intelligence, and deliver quotes, contracts, and invoices; and service that enables companies to deliver trusted and highly personalized customer support at scale.